


Spirited Discussion

by Loremaiden



Category: Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms, Sherlock Holmes - Arthur Conan Doyle
Genre: Community: watsons_woes, Gen, Ghosts, October Spooktacular, references to STUD
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-31
Updated: 2015-10-31
Packaged: 2018-04-29 05:52:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 544
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5117804
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Loremaiden/pseuds/Loremaiden
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Even in death, Holmes and Watson demonstrate that no man is--or should be--an island.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Spirited Discussion

**Author's Note:**

> Written in response to the October 2015 Spooktacular on Watson's Woes. This story is ACD Canon, but set in the present day (2015).
> 
> It's October! And this month, it's time to let your imagination run wild. The creepy, the unexplained, the macabre, or just a good old scare (or three): let the spooky haunt your creations this month. Short shrieks, epic eerieness, or graphic ghoulishness? It's up to you!

Matt came to St. Bart's to major in medicine, not partying.

Susan was very disappointed when he turned down her invitation to attend the Halloween Barts Bash, but she (eventually) understood that he had to study. It was Hugh that just wouldn't let it go. But what did they want from him? The exam was in less than a week; he couldn't waste his precious study time chugging booze and bobbing for apples.

It was when Matt lost his patience from being hounded to death about it at the library and he marched over to the chem lab in the older hospital wing for some peace and quiet, though, that Hugh finally dropped the used-car salesman impression. Hugh backed off with his hands up in surrender, saying that he wouldn't be caught dead in there; according to urban legend, the wing was haunted.

Matt rolled his eyes in farewell and firmly closed the chem lab door. Freak out the American with a stupid ghost story? Yeah right. The fluorescent lighting in the left corner was flickering and the room was cool, but it wasn't too distracting or unbearable. It was quiet, which was all that mattered. He cracked open his textbooks and set himself to work.

 _What does the acronym HHAPPPy stand for?_ He fanned through the textbook pages, trying to find the answer; he knew he saw that acronym in a previous section--

_...I've found it, I've found it!..._

Matt turned his head. He thought he heard a voice and some quick footsteps. He paused for a few moments, but didn't hear any more noises. Figuring that it was probably just someone running by, he continued studying. _Anion gap acidosis with an osmolar gap should suggest methanol or ethylene glycol poisoning--_

_...for I dabble with poisons a good deal..._

That sounded like it was in the room. He fully turned around in his seat, but there was no one there. He could feel the hairs on the back of his neck starting to rise. And was it his imagination, or was it getting colder? God, he could go for a cigarette right now--

_...always smoke "ship's" myself..._

Matt quickly stood up, nearly knocking over his chair in the process, calling out a tentative hello. No answer. Okay, _now_ he was starting to freak out--

_...my nerves are shaken..._

He ran to the door and yanked it open, now halfway convinced that it was just Hugh having a laugh at his expense. But the hallway was completely deserted, and a sweep of the room showed no phones or tape recorders. Matt was all alone, and at this point, he didn't want to be anymore.

Matt shakily pulled out his cell phone. It was only 10 o'clock; the party would definitely still be going on. He could do with a stiff drink and good company with his friends, he reasoned; he could squeeze in some study time with Susan tomorrow. Hurriedly stuffing his books into his messenger bag and retreating from the lab, Matt's mind recalled out of nowhere a quote he heard in class, while trying his hardest to ignore the two sets of phantom footsteps and the click of a cane echoing behind him.

_…"The proper study of mankind is man," you know..._


End file.
